How do people act in religious spaces and when faced with their own mortality?
My mantra for the environment project is focused on the way people behave when surrounded by religion and spirituality. I'm interested in the surreal effects of these places on different people- from those who are devoutly religious to atheists and those in-between. During our peer review, it was suggested that I looked at different religions, so I plan on researching different views on death and mortality. I think this will allow me to think deeper into how humanity as a whole approaches these topics. They also suggested that I should push my research and experiments further by properly questioning the reasons behind behaviour and attitudes to religious spaces.
In Church itself, there are specific expectations for etiquette during services, especially for traditions [9]. However, I am interested in the feeling of walking into a church or religious space. For religious people, this could feel special because it can be a visual representation of being close to God and for others there could be sentimentality from big life events. People unfamiliar with the space could find it eerie- with the high ceilings, rows of pews and silence, which is meant to promote reflection.
STATISTICAL
Being in a graveyard can have a completely different affect on the mind, which is faced with psychical reminders of death and mortality. Some terror management theorists [10] claim that humans have evolved to become more self-aware, but awareness of our own mortality can be counter-intuitive because it makes us question the meaning of our actions. They theorise that to prevent existential fears, humans cling to culture and believe if they contribute to or interact with their culture then their existence will have meaning. In 2 separate studies (in 1996 and 2005), psychologists questioned volunteers in 'mortality salience conditions' about their cultural/political views. The participants were interviewed outside a funeral home and a cemetery and the studies found that when people are reminded of their mortality, they act in line with social consensus or their own cultural identity, because the sense of belonging reduces the anxiety and isolation they feel in response to death. I am interested in the response to mortality and would like to conduct my own artistic research into this.
In 2011, the Office for National Statistics found that 59.3% of the population of England and Wales identified as Christian and 25.1% had no religious affiliation [11]. The highest percentages for minority groups were 4.8% Muslim and 1.5% Sikh. With the majority of the population being Christian, it is understandable that churches are culturally significant to the UK. However, the rising number of atheists means that churches are becoming more symbols of tradition rather than a spiritual place for worship. In my work, I could incorporate the ornate details of places of worship like the Mosque above as well as the church.
ETHICAL
Perhaps the church has become less relevant to people's lives because of recent ethical issues, which put the institution out of line with public opinion. A key issue is abortion, which is legal up to 24 weeks across the UK [12], but is strongly opposed by the Church of England, except when it "may be morally preferable to any available alternative" [13]. The Church is also against same-sex marriage, but is planning a study into sexuality, which will hopefully bring it further into line with modern opinions [14]. This is important to my mantra because people will feel less emotionally invested in an institution that doesn't reflect their values. Therefore, my research may be better focused on the mental effects of the cemetery, which is less affected by the institution.
PARALLELS, CONTRASTS AND RESONANCE FOR OTHERS
As most of my research is focused on Christian ideas of death and the Church, I read an article about alternative interpretations of death [15]. It discussed the idea that atheists and antagonists don't believe in an afterlife and instead they think death is just the definitive end to life. However, the article claimed that after these people have 'near-death experiences', they almost always have a spiritual awakening and turn to religion. Perhaps when humans come so close to their own mortality, they experience an existential fear that forces them to search for a greater meaning for reassurance.
Both Buddhists and Hindus believe in a type of karma, so death leads to a judgement of any actions and decisions made in life. Buddhists aspire to reach Nirvana through rebirth into a higher existence, so death is almost exciting for those who have lead a respectable life. In Hinduism, death symbolises a change in the form of the spirit and the journey to the afterlife. Muslims believe that souls are judged after death to decide whether they can enter Paradise with God, or if they will be punished. These are all somewhat similar to the Christian beliefs that I have looked at, as most religions agree that the afterlife depends on how morally the individual has acted during life. Perhaps people who have lived a more religious or morally respectable life are less afraid of death because they are reassured by a positive idea of afterlife. Religious people may also be less intimidated by their own mortality because there isn't the same sense of the unknown after death.
It could be interesting to incorporate ideas about the afterlife into my mantra, because of the links I have found between thoughts about mortality and beliefs about death.
OPPOSITES
My site features its own natural opposites, especially revolving around the juxtaposition between the church and the cemetery. The church itself hosts celebrations of life in the form of christenings, weddings and regular services that have traditionally been at the centre of the community. On the other hand, the graveyard is a place of isolation and solitude, it has a mournful and almost eerie atmosphere that is contrasted by the welcoming feel of a church on a Sunday. In my research, I have looked at fear in the face of death, but my site can also be a place of hope. During the coronavirus lockdown, places of worship were forced to close, but as they reopened, it was a sign of hope in a difficult time. For those older, isolated people, it meant they were able to connect socially again. I could use these contrasts to create tension or comparisons in my work.
COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH
Firstly, I asked the participants to 'disrespect' a piece of paper because I wanted to see how people acted when the expectations of respect were taken away. The results mainly revolved around destroying the paper- perhaps people view preservation as a form of respect, which would explain why there is so much importance around treating graves properly. The destruction ranged from crumpling the paper to burning it and walking over it, which all seem like careless acts. On the other hand, some people took the 'disrespect' in the way of being inappropriate and drew on their paper instead. This links to ideas about vandalism and the surveillance signs i saw in the churchyard. Perhaps churches have problems with that kind of disrespect because people want to rebel against the strong social expectations of those spaces. In fact, 19 criminal offences are recorded in churches and graveyards everyday [16], including more violent assaults, possibly because they tend to be private, secluded spaces in the middle of the community.
I then asked them to draw their idea of heaven or the afterlife in 2 minutes, with their eyes closed. Rather than specific preconceptions, I wanted to see the overall impression they had of the afterlife. They all chose bright colours and made loose marks and cloud shapes. I think this links to the widespread image that people have, possibly linking to childhood stories heaven being in the clouds. I could use this imagery in my outcomes to play on peoples existing preconceptions without explicitly talking about the afterlife.
OPEN EXPERIMENTATION
IMAGE DISTORTION
In order to distort and manipulate my photos and drawings, I started by using the photocopier. I experimented with colour by using the invert setting and by choosing two colours at a time. I also moved the images while they were being copied to create different lines and shapes. My favourite results were the distortions of my own work because all of the small details of line and colour were accentuated.
I then explored Kirigami cutting and folding techniques, using distorted photos of the cemetery and church door. I cut chevrons into the paper and folded them down to reveal the image on the back. This gave the impression of being able to see glimpses of what is behind the door. The concept is distorted because you would expect to see the inside of the church rather than the graveyard, but I like that this portrays the strange divide behind the two spaces.
To further explore the combining of photos, I used paper weaving. I cut up an inverted image of the cemetery and weaved it into the same photo which was printed with just black and green ink. the final result was really successful, as it looks like a strange, blurred reality. The black and green photo portrays the realistic, sombre feeling of the site and the inverted image almost looks like a glimpse into the afterlife. The image toes the boundary between the physical world and the perceived afterlife- the boundary between life and death.
Finally, I cut up elements of my distorted images and arranged them into collages. I looked at Dana Schutz's 'Missing Pictures' collection and was drawn to the strangeness of the stories and the vibrant colours, especially 'Group Massage' [17]. I wanted to further explore the idea of entrances and thresholds into religious spaces. To do so, I used the distorted church door and archway and collaged pieces of the initial distorted images inside them. This created the sense of entering a strange world, which is how I felt when I was at the site. There is also a link to entering the afterlife, especially because cemeteries are thought of as the boundary between heaven and the physical world.
PRINTMAKING
I started experimenting with printmaking using Gaugin type monoprints, drawing on paper over ink to transfer it onto the back of the sheet. I used different mark-making techniques with pencils and rubbers, but I found the more precise lines most effective. I like the distorted perspective I used in the graveyard image because it gives the impression of walking down the path. I then tried Paul Klee type monoprinting to experiment with different colours. I wanted to bring in ideas from my active research with the links to blood and humanity within plants, so the colours were quite effective. Although the print is quite simple, it raises questions about death, especially the difference between animal and plant deaths and how we react to them.
Finally, I planned to make a colour reduction print of the church door by layering different coloured inks. I found it difficult to accurately cut into the lino so it was quite time-consuming but I would like to finish the prints. I feel that I will be able to get a lot of detail and interesting colour combinations. I looked at Mark Hearld's prints [18] and liked their illustrative qualities, so I would like to try similar mark-making techniques in my print.
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